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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25767241">Promises</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LUZ_DE_ROC/pseuds/LUZ_DE_ROC'>LUZ_DE_ROC</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Acacias 38 (TV), Maitino - Fandom</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/F, Fluff, One Shot, Podcast, Romance</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 06:01:36</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,090</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25767241</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LUZ_DE_ROC/pseuds/LUZ_DE_ROC</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Post-Podcast Episode #6 ("Dos Cenas Para Dos")</p><p>What if instead of listening to Sophie and Nicolás, Maite and Camino listened to each other?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Maite and Camino, Maitino - Relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>38</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Promises</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This podcast is really giving me a run for my money. Chapter 6 was...well, I don't know what that was. So I tried to fix it, and I tried to do it as if it's actually still Maite and Camino, and not whoever is running loose in the podcast with the same names. Hopefully, this makes some of you smile.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It is in the middle of Sophie’s soliloquy on how loving one person is like a prison that I have a sudden epiphany.</p><p>I stare at her.</p><p>“Sophie, are you crazy?”</p><p>Sophie stops mid-sentence and stares back at me.</p><p>“What?”</p><p>I set down my drink.</p><p>“I have actually<em> been</em> to prison, in case you’ve forgotten. Trust me, loving one person for the rest of your life is <em>nothing</em> like prison. It’s the opposite. It’s freedom. It’s getting to be exactly who you are with the person who accepts you that way. It’s having trust and knowing you’re safe…” I pause and look Sophie in the eye. “…And I think I might have really screwed that up.”</p><p>Sophie looks at me confused.</p><p>“I don’t understand,” she says.</p><p>I stand up and put some money on the table.</p><p>“Sophie, I’m sorry. I have to go, okay?”</p><p>“But, Mai –”</p><p>I lean down and kiss her cheek.</p><p>“I’ll see you tomorrow. At the school. We’ll finish up the exhibit. But I really have to run now.”</p><p>And before Sophie can protest further, I turn and walk out of the café.</p><p>--------------------------------------</p><p>When I walk into the restaurant, it’s not hard to find Camino and Nicolás. As usual, Nicolás has secured himself a prominent place in the dining room so everyone knows he’s there, and I can hear his voice carrying as he waxes poetic about the dish in front of him. It’s all I can do not to roll my eyes as I walk toward them.</p><p>They both look up as I approach, and Camino’s eyebrows lift in surprise.</p><p>“Maite! Qué haces aquí?” she asks.</p><p>I smile at her.</p><p>“I need to talk to you,” I say, and then I turn my attention to Nicolás. “Nicolás, I hope you don’t mind, but I’m going to steal your dinner date away from you.”</p><p>Nicolás puts his hands up in surrender.</p><p>“No, no, por supuesto. It seems important.”</p><p>I look back down at Camino and hold out my hand.</p><p>“It is.”</p><p>Camino still looks thoroughly confused, but she takes my hand and stands up.</p><p>She looks back at Nicolás.</p><p>“Thank you for dinner. It was delicious.”</p><p>Nicolás nods.</p><p>“Of course. Any time.”</p><p>When we exit the restaurant, Camino tugs on my hand, bringing us to a stop.</p><p>“Maite, what’s this all about? What’s wrong?”</p><p>I shake my head.</p><p>“Nothing’s wrong. Or at least, nothing will be wrong soon.”</p><p>The expression on Camino’s face turns from confusion to the one that tells me she’s going to dig her heels in very soon.</p><p>“Are you going to keep talking in riddles, or are you going to tell me what’s going on?”</p><p>I take a breath.</p><p>“Yes, I’m going to tell you. But not here. Let’s go home first.”</p><p>She still looks doubtful, but she nods.</p><p>I smile at her, and then I walk toward the street to hail a cab. A few minutes later we climb in for the short ride home. Camino is quiet, staring out the window, and I know she’s wondering what’s going on. I reach over and take her hand. I lift it up to my lips and kiss her knuckles, hoping to convey to her that there’s nothing to worry about. She glances over at me and I can see the tension in her shoulders drop a little.</p><p>When we walk into our apartment, she turns toward me expectantly.</p><p>“Maite, please talk to me. What is this all about?”</p><p>I take a deep breath.</p><p>“I’m going to ask you a question. And I want you to answer me honestly. Will you do that?”</p><p>Her expression is one of confusion again, but she nods.</p><p>I look her straight in the eye.</p><p>“Why did you stop eating?” I ask.</p><p>Camino’s eyes immediately drop away from mine and land somewhere on the floor.</p><p>I step closer to her and gently take her face in my hands, making her look at me.</p><p>“Is it because you’re worried about money?”</p><p>Her eyes tell me the answer even before she nods.</p><p>“Por qué?” I ask. She waits a beat before answering.</p><p>“I heard you,” she confesses softly.</p><p>I draw my eyebrows together.</p><p>“Heard me? What do you mean?”</p><p>“I heard you talking to Sophie a little while ago. About how it was hard now that we’re both living here.”</p><p>The conversation comes back to me and my heart drops.</p><p>“Oh, Camino,” I say, my hands falling away from her.</p><p>“How did you know?” she asks.</p><p>I sigh. “When I stopped to think about it for a second, I started to put two and two together.”</p><p>“I didn’t want you to regret my coming here.”</p><p>My eyes immediately lock on hers.</p><p>“Regret it?” My voice breaks as I tear up. “Not in a million years, mi amor. Never. Camino, I am so sorry. I…shouldn’t have done that. I just…I think I got caught up in wanting to make everything perfect for you here. I just wanted you to be able to concentrate on going to school and learning. But I think I haven’t done a very good job, have I?”</p><p>Camino shrugs, and I can tell there’s something on her mind that she’s not saying.</p><p>I reach out and take her hand.</p><p>“Come here,” I say, leading her toward the couch. I pull her to sit down next to me and I hold onto her hand. “Talk to me. Por favor,” I encourage.</p><p>She covers my hand with her other one, and then she begins to speak haltingly.</p><p>“Maite…this is harder than I thought it was going to be. I’m so happy to be here with you, I am, but I barely know anyone here, I’m still learning the language, and I miss home more than I thought I would. I even miss my mother if you can believe it.”</p><p>My heart breaks as I listen to her quiet voice.</p><p>“Of course I can believe it, amor mío. That is completely normal.”</p><p>She looks up at me, surprised, and I smile at her as I squeeze her hand.</p><p>“When I moved here, I felt the same way. I begged my parents to let me come here, it was my dream to go to one of the best art schools in the world, and I couldn’t <em>wait</em> to go. But when I got here, knowing only a few words in French and living with some other international students near the school, all I wanted to do was go home, and I couldn’t figure out why when I’d finally gotten exactly what I wanted.”</p><p>“What changed?” Camino asks.</p><p>“Well, it turned out all the students I was living with seemed to speak a few words in each other’s language so we got by with some basic phrases and a lot of hand gestures. And as we all eventually learned French, it got easier. I made some friends at school. And for a while I simply channeled my feelings into my art until I started to feel like this city was my city.” I tilt my head at her. “But it was so long ago, I forgot what that felt like, and I’m sorry I didn’t realize that was happening to you.”</p><p>Camino shakes her head.</p><p>“It’s okay.”</p><p>“No, it’s not. I got so caught up in the exhibition and trying to control everything that I forgot to pay attention to the most important thing in my life.” I reach out to touch her face. “I’m going to do better, I promise.”</p><p>She leans into my touch.</p><p>“Ven aquí,” I say softly, leaning back against the arm of the couch. She follows me willingly until she’s resting against me, her head on my chest and one hand around my waist. I smooth my fingers through her hair until I feel her body relax.</p><p>“Camino, I want you to promise me something. Well, two things. No…three.”</p><p>I hear her small sound of amusement.</p><p>“That’s a lot of promises.”</p><p>I kiss the top of her head.</p><p>“I know. But they’re good.”</p><p>“Let’s hear them.”</p><p>“One. Promise you’ll start eating normally. Because I’ve witnessed how you attack a meal when you’re hungry, and I haven’t seen food disappear that quickly for some time now.” I hear her chuckle as I continue. “We are not hurting that badly for money. And if we are, <em>I</em> promise <em>you</em> that I will come to <em>you</em> to talk about it. ¿Sí?”</p><p>I can feel her nod.</p><p>“Te lo prometo.”</p><p>“Bueno. Two. I want you to promise me that if something is bothering you, you’ll tell me, even if you think I don’t want to hear it.”</p><p>Another nod.</p><p>“Sí, I’ll try.”</p><p>“We have to talk to each other, Camino. Otherwise, this doesn’t work. And I’m going to remember that as well.”</p><p>“I know, I promise. And three?”</p><p>“This one is the most important. Promise me you won’t stop loving me. Because your love is the best thing that has ever happened to me, and I know that I am so very lucky to have it.”</p><p>She tilts her head to look up at me.</p><p>“That’s the easiest promise I ever have to make. Te amo con todo mi corazón. And I always will.”</p><p>I lean down to kiss her softly.</p><p>“Te amo también, mi niña. And now I’m going to make you a promise. Well, two.”</p><p>She tucks back under my chin.</p><p>“I’m listening,” she says, and I can hear the smile in her voice.</p><p>“I promise to love you fiercely with everything that I am.” I tighten my arms around her. “I never believed I would get a chance like this again.”</p><p>Camino shifts and props herself up to look at me. She reaches one hand to slide around my neck, as is her habit, and draws my mouth to hers.</p><p>“Believe it,” she murmurs against my lips. “This is yours.”</p><p>I tilt my forehead against hers and smile.</p><p>She kisses me again.</p><p>“And the second promise?”</p><p>I reach up to brush away some of the hair in Camino’s face.</p><p>“I promise that after this exhibit is over, I am going to show you all around this city.”</p><p>Camino shakes her head.</p><p>“You don’t have to do that.”</p><p>“I know I don’t have to. I want to. I want you to feel like this is your home, Camino. There is so much to love about this city, and I want to share it with you.”</p><p>Camino’s gaze drops away.</p><p>“When I was talking to Nicolás, he said I shouldn’t monopolize your time, and –”</p><p>I prop my finger under her chin to get her attention.</p><p>“Camino, do not take anything Nicolás says to heart. He’s pompous and arrogant and loves to listen to himself talk. Half the things he says are exaggerated for effect and the other half he forgets he even said. I like him well enough, and he’s Sophie’s husband so I have to believe he doesn’t mean any harm, but trust me, he’s not one you should go to for advice.”</p><p>Camino considers my words for a minute, and then slowly nods.</p><p>“Maybe you’re right.”</p><p>“Camino. It is true we’re going to have to figure out how to divide our time between work and school and each other. But that is never going to mean I don’t want to spend time with you. I lived without you for months, and I hated every minute. We are going to figure this out.”</p><p>Camino smiles at me, genuinely and openly.</p><p>“And <em>maybe</em>,” I say, leaning forward to brush my lips against hers, “<em>Maybe</em> we can work on some artwork together?”</p><p>She kisses me back, her tongue just reaching out to touch mine, and an almost instant heat crawls up my spine.</p><p>“Mmmm, sí?” she asks, sitting up. “What kind of art?”</p><p>“Well,” I say, smiling suggestively. “I seem to recall someone asking me a while ago if she could paint me…”</p><p>Camino leans away, her eyes now full of mischief.</p><p>“We’ve already worked on portraits,” she informs me. I raise my eyebrows.</p><p>“Ah, sí? And what are you working on now?”</p><p>Camino looks me over.</p><p>“Nudes.”</p><p>I try unsuccessfully to hide my smile.</p><p>“Well, in that case,” I say, standing up. I look down at her while I slowly unbutton my shirt and shrug out of it. I toss it into her lap and begin walking toward our bedroom. “We’d better get started on the research.”</p><p>I hear the lovely sound of her laugh as she gets off the couch and follows me down the hall.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
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